Zanobi Machiavelli (Florence, Italy 1418 - Pisa, Italy 1479)

Trained in Florence, he followed in the footsteps of Filippo Lippi and Pesellino, he is believed to have studied under Benozzo Gozzoli in Bruges.

Influenced by the great frescoes of Masaccio, Zanobi Machiavelli incorporated unmistakable realism in his artworks, a style based on brighter colours and the distinctive use of more defined shadows to create a sense of space and perspective.

Among the numerous works, characterized by an accentuated value and a flair to details, during the fifteenth century, he took part in a series of important commissions, including the high altarpiece for the church of the Badia Fiesolana in Florence: one of the most prestigious sites for the artistic patronage of the Medici in Renaissance Florence.

Some of his most important artworks are in the National Gallery of London and the Dunedin Public Art Gallery in New Zealand.

He died in Pisa in 1479. 

Photo UniCredit Group (Sebastiano Pellion di Persano)